Technology
has opened up all kinds of exciting possibilities
for punters, sports lovers, news hounds, big business,
and just about everyone else, however, technology
can both make and cost us all a lot of money. Technology
has certainly joined the ranks of the Good VS Evil
club. Tech giant Google proclaims 'Don't Be Evil',
and as Media Man and Gambling911 learn, folks are
starting to question the core of Apple and a host
of telcos, along with parts of their business model.
Worse than preying on "problem gamblers"?
Are "problem smartphone" users the new addiction
to be alert to? You be the judge...

Red
hot iPhones and smartphones are seeing multitudes
of the population getting massive bills generated
from web downloads.

Of
late the online gambling sector has been copping a
bit of heat from some small but vocal parts of the
community and government, but iphones in general are
stating to be seen as quite the "wolf in sheep's
clothing". You don't have to visiting an online
casino or sports betting website to run into danger
of getting a 5 figure bill.

The
Media Man research crew has learned that with iphones
one can loose track of data costs and the bill can
go through the roof, where as with online casinos
and sports betting one is much more aware of what
they are downloading and spending, and are much less
likely to be hit with a huge data bill. Furthermore,
a number of online casinos such as PartyGaming - PartyCasino
offer the option to play in browser mode, so the customer
doesn't have to worry about large downloads and data
costs. Sports bets can be done online for just a few
dollars after an account has been set up.

Readers,
a most important part of the equation with iphones
and the like is to ensure you are on the correct plan
(and adapt your use to it). Get the terms and conditions
in writing. If you do rake up a bill and are not happy
with the ISP and comms company you believe responsible,
most countries offer a telecommunications complaint
department. Down under in Australia it's the Australian
Telecommunications Ombudsman, and our spies tell us
it is a very busy office. Australia is understood
to have more telecommunications complaints per capita
than any other country.

Aussie
MP Gets Stung For Huge Bill Via Son's iPhone Downloading

A
South Australian MP (Member of Parliament) has been
hit with a whopping $10,000 bill on his phone after
it was discovered his son downloaded footy games!
God, the Australian sports scandals continue to find
new directions just when we thought we were getting
closer to exhausting our efforts.

MP
Russell Wortley usually got a phone bill for $200
bucks. After getting the latest bill he went into
what is known as "bill shock".

"I
was in shock, I only use my phone for mobile calls,
so I knew there was a problem" Mr Wortley said.

His
13-year-old son was the culprit. You've got to watch
those "little monsters". The minor had downloaded
"free games" on his dad's impressive new
iPhone without permission.

Mr
Wortley failed understand that, while the smartphone
had the capacity to download the applications, his
phone plan did not. This may be covered in the fine
print. Insiders say Mr Wortley may do well to bring
in the legal eagles, as telecommunications companies
are well known to overcharge people, just as banks
are... the mongrels.

As
of time of publication it was undetermined if the
charges are from the actual download, or for the time
his boy spent playing the "free games".

"I
can't believe somebody would be charged $4000 for
playing a game for one hour," he said. "It
sounds mind-boggling. "People should know that
they, or their children, could be innocently downloading
games which they think are free, but at the end of
the day they end up costing thousands of dollars,"
he said.

An
update... to Media Man's disappointment we have learned
that Mr Wortley is now going to pay the bill himself.

The
"bill shock" matter serves as a warning
to those intending to play games on their iphones
or whatever. Again, check your plan and the fine print.
One may do well to take precautions and keep the iphone
locked up somewhere safe if not using it... especially
out of sight and grasp of young and inquiring minds.

The
victim has even taken the complaint to Communications
Minister Stephen Conroy, who said he would follow
it up with the Australian Mobile Telecommunications
Association (AMTA).

AMTA
chief executive Chris Althaus advise the industry
group had contacted Senator Conroy's office after
the publicity over the Mr Wortley's phone bill.

But
Mr Althaus advised his take on precautions punters
er consumers could take to avoid "bill shock".

Pre-paid
plans can help people who are virgins to determine
how much data they are downloading without a nasty
surprise at the end of the month.

Data
monitoring can provide alerts to those on plans when
they are reaching the end of their data limits.

"We're
very anxious that people get a sense of what their
consumption might be because it's a new format...there
are...new applications and new ways of downloading
content," he said.

"The
mobile data scene is going to be incredibly valuable
to consumers, the economy and all manner of sectors
... but we've all got to get a little educated along
the way.

"It's
in nobody's interest to have people in debt."

iPhones
- heaven or hell... take a bite out of the Garden
Of Eden if you will, but be prepared to meet the devil...
ok, meet your accountant and the accounts receivable
departments.

A
number of Australian MP's are looking to get some
iphone applications banned, and are probing at least
one Australian iphone app maker. Based on this this
horror story it may be a good idea to further regulate
the igaming sector, and they should further clean
up the Australian telecommunications sector whilst
they are at it. It's no secret the Aussie comms sector
has a number of "snake oil" salesmen and
operators within, so let's get the bad guys who give
the industry a bad name.

Maybe
the online slot games that have a "play for free"
option, as well as "play for money", aren't
such bad value for money after all. You've got to
be in it to win it. Spin to win, but be alert to spin
of a different kind from your friendly igaming data
firm and telco.

Popular
game titles such as Cleo (Cleopatra) and Tomb Raider
are starting to hit the iphone market but the testers
in the "rat lab" at Media Man reckon its
better and safer to play them on a regular computer.
Again, know what plan you're on. If you fail to plan,
you plan to fail. Media Man and Gambling911 want winners,
not losers.

Know
the odds, set limits and have fun... and it you have
a "smartphone" aka iphone, be alert and
take precautions.

*Greg
Tingle is a special contributor for Gambling911

*Media
Man http://www.CasinoNewsMedia.com is primarily a media,
publicity and internet portal development company